The present invention relates generally to containers for retaining, protecting, and displaying produce and other retail goods and making such containers. More particularly, the present application relates to a low-cost, single-blank retail goods container having hinged platforms which are easily movable between closed and open positions.
Flat sheets of corrugated fiberboard or paperboard, typically referred to as blanks, have been used for many years as the starting material to form containers. For ease of description, corrugated fiberboard will be used by way of example, but paperboard is also contemplated. Corrugated fiberboard generally refers to a multi-layer sheet material comprised of two sheets of liner bonded to a central corrugated layer of medium. Given a basic size requirement specified by the customer, industry standards, and the preference for low cost, fiberboard container manufacturers strive to provide structural stacking strength with a minimal amount of corrugated fiberboard. A typical well-known container is a single piece tray design having a bottom wall, two side walls, and two end walls each hinged to the bottom wall. Typically, a single piece of corrugated fiberboard will be cut and scored to form a flat blank that will then be erected into this container.
Typical containers for the support and transport of food articles and other retail goods are corrugated containers having fixed configurations. These containers must be filled, stacked, transported, and later unstacked on-site for display or storage purposes. One method of facilitating the stacking of containers is to provide shoulders or platforms partially covering the top openings of the containers. While this approach makes it easier to stack boxes without the boxes falling into each other (i.e., xe2x80x9cnestingxe2x80x9d), it has the negative result of making the container more difficult to load and unload. Further, there is a direct relationship between the coverage of the stacking platform and improved stacking ability, but there is also a direct relationship between the coverage of the platform and the difficulty of loading and unloading the container.
A packed container of produce or retail goods will generally hold a weight suitable for handling by an individual. Such containers will be generally rectangular and have variable dimensions. Further, these containers will normally be stacked for transport and storage. The cost of labor, in the form of the time required to handle the produce and to assemble the shipping containers, can be a significant factor in the overall cost of the produce. Many current containers can only be assembled by hand, a method that is costly and time consuming. Assembling fiberboard containers for setup by a machine where cooperating adjoining fiberboard sections are adhesively bonded to form the container can reduce cost and time.
It is important in the production, distribution, and sale of perishable and nonperishable articles, such as produce and case ready meat products, that the articles are safely, economically, and conveniently stored for transport and safely and securely shipped for sale. Safe and secure storage and shipping is particularly a problem if heavy items must be placed in containers that are stacked upon each other. Stackable meat and containers often acquire, for example, bulging side or end walls, deformed bottom walls, or smashed corners that damage the produce due to, for example, the weight or movement of the produce during shipment. Further, if the environment in which the fiberboard container is shipped or stored is refrigerated, the moisture present in a refrigerated environment is likely to be absorbed by and weaken the container. Thus, it is important to ensure that maximum stability is maintained in a container throughout the shipping process so that a container holds up to forces on the container from goods packaged in the container, from other containers stacked atop the container, and from general handling of the container.
Once the food product reaches a retail destination, the product is removed from the container and put on sale for use. Removing the food from the container is time consuming. This can be especially difficult if the container has platforms partially covering the top of the container and the person unloading the container must reach around the platforms to get to the food products.
Thus, it is desirable to provide a container for transporting goods that is both durable and secure to prevent corrugation failure and damage to contents, and yet is easily stacked, loaded, and unloaded.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a container is provided which is economical to manufacture and easy to stack and which also provides easy access to space within the container for purposes of loading and unloading the container.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a container is provided with hinged platforms which are movable between closed positions, wherein the platforms make it easy to stack containers atop one another, and opened positions, wherein the hinged platforms do not impede access to the interior of the container and the container is easily loaded and unloaded.
According to another embodiment of the present invention, a container is provided with corner reinforcement flaps which strengthen container side walls to prevent nesting and container failure.